Pat Quinn

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin ruled himself out of the 2018 Illinois governor's race after keeping his Washington leadership post on Wednesday, leaving Illinois Democrats in a quandary as they look for someone to challenge Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.

"I kept telling people of Illinois, I've got a pretty important job working in the United States Senate in the No. 2 Democratic position," said Durbin, who has been Senate whip for his party since 2005. "It was interesting to me that the day after the (Nov. 8) election, many of them came up to me and said, 'Stay in the Senate. We need you.'"

Durbin was the most buzzed-about potential Rauner challenger at July's...

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